I've been coloring my hair for several decades now. It first started just for fun, and now I do it monthly to cover grey roots. I've used almost all of the OTC brands, and now I lean towards a more natural product, "Naturtint" that I buy at the Vitamin Cottage store. It costs double the price of those found in the drug stores.

Any thoughts on hair dye safety or preferences? Here's just one of many articles out there.

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From:Is Hair Dye Safe?

Nearly 7 out of every 10 American women color their hair to hide gray roots, explore whether blondes have more fun, or just try something new. But given that the ingredients lists on hair dyes typically read like chemistry textbooks, we have to wonder: Are dyes actually safe to put on our heads?

For the most part, the answer is a qualified yes -- at least as far as cancer is concerned. Dozens of studies have ruled out connections between hair dye and bladder and breast cancer, brain tumors, and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

Skin Concerns
Health experts still stop short of giving dyes a clean bill of health, though, partly because of the skin reactions they can cause. Kathleen Davis, M.D., an integrative dermatologist in New York City, says that contact dermatitis from p-Phenylenediamine (PPD), a known allergen, can result in temporarily swollen eyelids or rashes around the hairline. Since PPD is more concentrated in darker shades, it's a particular concern for brunettes.

Would-be blondes have bleach to blame for blisters and burning on sensitive scalps as well as lightheadedness. But the bleaching processes have improved: "The amount of ammonia in dyes and bleaches is very slight now compared with 20 years ago," says Eva Scrivo, a New York City colorist, referring to the potentially skin-irritating chemical used in products to help color penetrate hair. "In the '60s, products contained 20 percent ammonia, but now they're down to 1.5 percent." She says some new bleaches don't contain any ammonia at all -- and still work well if you have light to medium brown hair. If you're worried, try a patch test before subjecting your whole scalp to the dye in question, or take a lighter approach. "With highlights," Scrivo says, "nothing touches the scalp."

"Natural" or Not?
If you're bothered by even the chance that dyes could irritate your skin, you might turn to "natural" brands. While no studies yet make the claim that the dyes you find at the health-food store are any safer than those at the drugstore, "it's just intuitive," says Davis. "The fewer harsh chemicals you're using, the better off your body is."

But "natural" doesn't always mean safe. Read the labels. The only truly natural, plant-derived, permanent hair color is henna -- and not even every shade of it. John Masters, of the eponymous salon and beauty brand, says, "The lone shade that's 100 percent natural is that orange-red one, which doesn't suit many people." Henna is also famously unpredictable in its saturation, so it's no surprise that he -- like most professional colorists -- prefers not to use it.

For the naturally inclined, vegetable dyes are the next best thing. Most still contain nonvegetable content, so you (or your colorist) should scan the ingredients. What you likely won't find in these picks are resorcinol, which helps adjust tone but can harm skin, and ammonia. The more natural dyes also tend to have low levels of PPD and avoid formula-preserving parabens that may pose adverse hormonal effects. If you're a do-it-yourself type, look for dyes like Changes by Tints of Nature and Naturtint at health-food stores. Scrivo also recommends the Herbatint line -- both salon and drugstore versions. "I found it more mild on my own hair," she says, "and it has really good gray coverage, which can be hard to get with vegetable-based colors.

While even most vegetable dyes still can't be described as all-natural, they are inching closer. Like the other experts we spoke with, Masters sticks with herbal colors that contain no parabens, ammonia, or resorcinol. He sometimes uses the Elumen Hair Color line, which uses an entirely new process to put color on strands of hair. Instead of damaging hair by disrupting the strand's cuticle -- as happens with ammonia or peroxide, and which leads to dried out and damaged 'dos -- the color molecules penetrate the shaft through magnetic attraction. Hair remains healthy, and fewer chemicals end up on your head -- or swirling down the drain.
For many, that potential environmental impact is the best incentive for using less toxic options. "You wouldn't believe how many toxic chemicals are being rinsed from colorists' sinks into the waterways," Masters says, noting that some later show up in freshwater fish and groundwater supplies. So even as the health risks of using hair dye have been shown to be fewer and less serious than once believed, you might explore gentler versions for environmental reasons. Luckily, with an exploding natural-brands beauty market, that's not hard to do.

A forty something year old woman in my hometown started to date her young son's best friend. In order to impress the youth, she decided to colour her hair in the region south of the Equator. Big mistake! The entire region became swollen and she had to endure about a week in hospital being laughted at by people.

The husband of a woman I worked with years ago was once hospitalized. One Sunday she went to the hospital to visit her husband. There she met her husband's sister colouring his
hair. Vanity before sanity.

Years ago, a friend approached me for help with a "problem" he had. At 58 he was two years away from compulsory retirement. At that point he had been five years into an outside relationship with a girl aged twenty five. He used to dye his hair and had never discussed age with her. She used to visit him at his work place. He was afraid that when he retired she would have discovered that he was sixty years old. I told him that he was fooling himself and that the girl was playing for some of his retirement benefits.

Caught part of the new Dr. Oz show on TV yesterday, and he told a woman in the audience that hair dyes are different now than they were years ago. He said that as long as she took the normal precautions of not leaving it on too long, rinsing it out well and using gloves, it's fine and she should keep on using it.

Can someone recommend a hair lightener such as a herb I might have in my garden or something I might have at home.

I've never tried anything for lightening other than lemon juice, but I've read that Chamomile flowers are good for lightening hair. You steep a cup of flowers in a gallon of water and apply after you've washed and towel dried. Then leave on around 1/2 hour and rinse. It has to be repeated weekly until the hair gets light enough.

It pains me to say, there really aren't any completely 'safe' hair dyes. Even some hennas don't meet the zero baseline. I look at it this way, for the once every 6 weeks touchups, I'll just be much more careful with exposure to other things. Luckily, my family goes white, and not grey. Eventually, when I'm in my 80's and I stop working , I'll let it go........

Stress in the last year caused some grey sprouts. Since I don't want to change the natural color of my hair (now completely brunette), I experimented by cutting the 20 volume h2o2 to 1 1/2 oz of distilled water, 1/2 oz h2o2 and add it to 2 oz of color. So far, so good!

15% distilled water5% h2o220% color

I was a frosted blond to various degrees for many years, but since your scalp is protected by the cap you y-a-n-k your hair through, chemicals don't have the opportunity to absorb through your skin. Highlighting or frosting with a cap is relatively safe IMO.

A forty something year old woman in my hometown started to date her young son's best friend. In order to impress the youth, she decided to colour her hair in the region south of the Equator. Big mistake! The entire region became swollen and she had to endure about a week in hospital being laughted at by people.

Lol!!!

Yep, ya gotta be careful down there. Can't just slather it on... Qtip used like mascara works well if you're looking to liven up the color Even mixing koolaid into a mayo consistancy w/water works, similarly to henna.lol

Whoa, that's freaky, that picture of the girl above could be me when I was younger, even the hair, but not red. Maybe she's a long lost cousin.

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Originally Posted by liverock

On a CFS forum I visit, some women have had the toxins blocking their mitochondria(they provide energy for all cells), analysed and one woman had 40% of her mito's blocked by hair dye.

In my book there is no such thing as a safe hair dye.

This is what I'm worried about.

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Originally Posted by Cedy

What's the use dyeing one's hair when one cannot dye one's age?

True, and I must say, dyed hair on my 70 year old MIL looks harsh and I think it actually makes her look older, but when you're in your 40's it feels a little soon to go grey. I've been pulling grey hairs for a few years, but soon, alas, I'll have to make the dreaded choice. Maybe I can hold out till 50 and accept it. Is that vain or just being culturally acceptable?

31 March 2010
If you use a standard hair dye, you are more likely to develop liver disease, which could lead to arthritis, thyroid problems and gut allergies. Women, in particular, who regularly use a hair dye are 37 per cent more likely to develop the liver condition known as PBC (primary biliary cirrhosis) compared with those who donít. PBC is common among people with an auto-immune disease such as rheumatoid arthritis, thyroid problems and allergies such as celiac disease, and is an early form of liver cirrhosis, a fatal disease thatís often associated with heavy drinking. But in a survey of groups of people with, and without, PBC, drinking was not an important factor. However, researchers discovered a direct link with the use of hair dyes and nail polish, both of which contain octynoic acid, and with smoking. (Source: Gut, 2010; 59: 508-512).

I use 3% peroxide, and sometimes perhaps once or so a year I use a name brand hair color. I don't like the chemicals and the smell.

The peroxide if not overdone doesn't cause too much frizz. Since my hair color is on the dark blond side it works. I can't see any problem, due to not liking to wear the right eyeglasses. This helps me to be quite satisfied with the look.

I don't have enough vanity to endure the hair coloring process. For me it is too much of an effort to go through since before I know it I will have to do it again.